Nelson Tasman-based airline Originair has added a Nelson-Wellington route to its offering in response to passenger demand.
The airline, which was established in 2015, used to fly between Nelson and Wellington, but suspended the route with the arrival of Jetstar, which no longer flies between Nelson and Wellington.
Flights on the Nelson-Wellington route will begin on 14 February 2020, with bookings now available via Originair’s website or by calling the airline on 0800 380380.
“Our customers have been asking us to consider a Nelson-Wellington route and we’re really pleased to be able to respond to that interest,” says Originair’s CEO Robert Inglis.
Robert has been in the industry a long time, and is the co-founder of Air Nelson.
Originair’s new Wellington service will initially be limited to 10 sectors per week, concentrating on peak demand times.
“We’re not offering an extensive schedule at the outset but we hope that it will provide extra capacity at times that are most useful to travellers on that route,” says Robert.
The move comes after Jetstar ended flights to Nelson, Napier, New Plymouth and Palmerston North on November 30, saying that the airline’s regional flights were loss-making, combined with higher costs and a softening of the regional travel market.
Since they began operating in Nelson in December 2015, Jetstar carried nearly 680,000 passengers.
Jetstar Airways Chief Executive Gareth Edwards explained that after four years of giving it a go, their regional operation was loss-making and demand had slowed.
“Unfortunately, we don’t see that changing any time soon.”
Origin’s announcement of the Nelson-Wellington route comes after very consistent and encouraging demand for seats on the airline’s newly-resumed Nelson-Palmerston North service.
“We are very happy with the way that the reintroduction of our Palmerston North service has been going,” says Inglis. “Demand has been solid and that gives us additional confidence to grow our service offering.”
Nelson Tasman-based Originair was established in 2015 and has provided services to Palmerston North, New Plymouth, Napier and now Wellington.